Graduate School Offers Added Support for Ph.D. Students and Families

September 28, 2017

The Graduate School of Art and Sciences will provide additional flexibility and support to Ph.D. students and their families, Dean Lynn Cooley has announced.

Under the new Ph.D. Student Family Support Policy, Ph.D. students with a child will receive an annual subsidy of $4,500 that can be used for any family expense. In order to reach all Ph.D. student parents, Yale is increasing the amount it spends on family support by 24% (an increase of more than $400,000).

In order to roll out this new policy as quickly as possible, a half subsidy of $2,250 will be available in the spring semester (2018), with the full subsidy taking effect in academic year 2018-2019.

“I am thankful to the Graduate Student Assembly (GSA) for its hard work on addressing this student concern over the past two years,” Cooley wrote in a message to students. “This new Ph.D. Student Family Support Policy provides a level of flexibility beyond what is offered by our peers.”

The annual family subsidy will be provided to students with a child of any age. For additional children under the age of six, a subsidy of $1,000 per child will be provided. Students may decide how best to use the funding.

Cooley noted that the new family support will not require means testing. “This avoids the need for students to submit financial documents or be subject to income thresholds, and also minimizes the need to divert funds into administrative costs,” the dean explained.

The dean noted that Yale Health coverage for the student and children will continue to be provided in a health award to the student. Coverage will also continue to be available from the Graduate School for half the cost of the two-person health insurance plan when the doctoral student is enrolled with a spouse. The $4,500 family subsidy will be more than enough to cover the other half of a two-person policy. If health care for the spouse is provided by another source, the $4,500 can be used for any other family expense.

“We are committed to helping all graduate students succeed during their time at Yale,” Cooley said. “Our Parental Relief Policy offers one fully-funded extra semester in graduate school per child, with the student’s academic clock stopped. With the introduction of the enhanced Ph.D. Student Family Support Policy, all student parents will have better, and more flexible financial support for family expenses than many of our peer institutions provide.”